Iron Man #3

Dang, I love modular Iron Man. Kieron Gillen addresses the main complaint (or possible complaint) about his take on Iron Man head-on. Basically, if the last suit was made of liquid metal and “morphable” into different configurations, why take a step back to a modular design? I think the answer is “because it leads to cool stories” but Tony Stark claims that he can specialize to a greater extent with modular armor.

This issue takes a spin on the whole “stealth suit” design of the olden days with a low-powered camo-rig that Tony uses to infiltrate a druglord’s home. The criminal is taking no chances, employing Living Laser, Firebrand, and Vibro to help guard his estate. I absolutely love that Gillen wasted little time in bringing in some classic Iron Man foes. Even better, Iron Man’s stealth suit does struggle against the Living Laser. He’s been a powerful foil in the past, so I love seeing him escape and live to fight another day during this confrontation. Another nice touch is Gillen’s twist on just why that kingpin wanted Extremis anyway.

Greg Land is really impressing me with his work on this title. I still can’t stand the way Pepper Potts looks like a runway model and Tony Stark has the same face shopped into different angles. But, I have to give credit where it is due; Land is killing it with the armor. The different configurations look exciting and modern, and the redesigns on the classic rogue’s gallery work well too. I’m OK with one-off villainess like Firebrand looking like adult film stars, that’s just part of the super-hero idiom, right?

Good